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Technology continues to evolve and users continue to become more comfortable and familiar with all of the systems that are available for use.

Help desks are also changing and evolving with technology, and it is important that businesses and organizations are able to maximize the productivity and efficiency of their help desk to ensure that it will continue to be a major part of the business.

The IT landscape looks significantly different today than it did a few years ago. Do you remember the traditional on-premise help desk that handled a variety of urgent needs and questions? That has also changed. Many businesses and organizations are making an attempt to cut costs, and since there is a growing trend to outsource one or multiple areas of a business, outsourcing help desk to a third-party provider has become an option many businesses are taking.

There are several challenges and trends that can produce a significant amount of pressure on an on-premise help desk, including cloud technology, mobility, and remote access. All of these challenges are compounded by the need to have instant fulfilment or satisfaction, in addition to some businesses and organizations having the mindset that a help desk is actually a hindrance to efficiency and productivity. Unfortunately, this mindset can result in businesses and organizations working around the help desk instead of using it to fulfil their goals.

A pertinent help desk that has the ability to meet the difficulties and challenges of technology can provide employees with the resources and tools they need to effectively do their job. There are several ways that your IT help desk can remain pertinent and associated with all of your business goals and priorities, including the following:

Place More Attention On New Trends

While it is important that help desk technicians are aware of everything you a currently running, it is also important that the technicians have every opportunity to learn about the latest trends and developments that are in the works. Help desk technicians should also expand their mindset by researching what is ahead.

Not only will focusing on new trends help your technicians respond more efficiently and effectively, but it will also encourage them to share their opinions about what type of changes they feel the business or organization could be making technologically. The technicians will be able to provide assistance with the search and execution of new and great ideas when they are given the ability to research the developments and trends on behalf of the business or organization.

Improve The Ticketing Process

Members of your IT help desk staff can become very frustrated and overwhelmed by all of the questions and unexpected problems. This can also apply to the variety of phone calls that come into the help desk. Every efficient help desk will have a ticketing system in place that is used to track questions and problems. There will be some ticketing systems that will have a greater level of success than others. The more successful ticketing systems will offer multiple ways to open tickets.

Your technicians will be able to do their jobs more productively and rapidly when your ticketing system makes it easy to open tickets, review the status of the ticket, and respond to the replies that have been left. Everyone will be able to stay in the loop when you have an efficient ticketing system. You will also be able to assign priorities to the tickets that have been created, and response times can also be prioritized so users can have an estimate of when they should receive a response.

When someone submits a ticket and has their response time prioritized, they will not have to send follow-up messages asking if their ticket has been received. They will see an estimated contact time based on the priority of their ticket. Tickets can be categorized as being low, medium, or high, and the tickets that are prioritized higher will be contacted in a quicker time frame.

Promote Self-Service

One of the best ways you can lower ticket volume without decreasing customer satisfaction is by encouraging and promoting self-service. The majority of customers have a preference for self-service. However, they will prefer a self-service support system that is easy to use. When you offer a self-service portal, you will have another way to make it easier for customers to receive the answers to the problems and concerns they have. You can give customers what they want with a variety of solutions and resources, including online communities and knowledge bases.

Accept Feedback

How will you know if you are doing things right if you are not receiving feedback? It will be impossible. We encourage you to obtain input from the business or organization and the members of your help desk staff so you will know what is working and what is not working. You can choose to use multiple methods to gain feedback, including surveys, meetings, and a dedicated email address that is used to address concerns and share feedback.

You may not want to encourage feedback that is anonymous because it may sometimes contain more animosity than feedback. You will not be able to please everyone at all times, but you can focus on evening out the feedback when you receive it. Some people get upset and frustrated when they have to wait in line for two minutes, but others may like that they are not receiving quick service because it could mean they will have some time off from work because their computers are not working.

It is important that you listen to what your employees and your help desk technicians are saying so you will be able to make sure everyone is receiving the improvements they need.

It should not be difficult for customers to ask for help and receive it. Unfortunately, many help desks are making it difficult and inefficient for customers to ask for help without even realizing it. You should have a goal to get people to realize that once they reach your help desk they will not have to take any more steps to get the help they need. Are you ready to get the most out of your IT help desk? Are you ready to have the tools you need to measure your goals, measure your effectiveness, and to make the best overall decisions that will guide your help desk team?